Becket: Period 6 Timeline

6.1 Science and the Environment

6.2 Global Conflicts and their Consequences

WWI

1914 - 1918

World War I was, as the name specifies, the first war that involved all of the continents of the globe. Initiated by the assasination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the war was a result of countries who had to mobilize their troops, due to very complex and convoluted ally agreements. The war pitted France, The United Kingdom, and Russia (amongst many) against Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire. Lasting 4 years, the war ended in a victory of France, the UK, and Russia.

Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

1914

Archduke Franz Ferdinand was the heir to Austria-Hungarian throne, and was a Slav sympathizer. A pan-slavic group killed him, and in doing that, Austria decided to undermine Serbia, setting off a chain of events that resulted in the mobilization of Germany and Russia, then causing World War I.

Ataturk Proclaims Republic of Turkey

1923

Ataturk was a war hero from WWI, at the battle of Gallipoli. He had a large hand in the defeat of the Ottoman, and then led the Turks into a new era of being a Republic.

1st Soviet 5-Year Plan

1928 - 1932

Introduced by Josef Stalin, the 5-Year Plan was a plot for collectivization and industrialization in Russia. There was a need, since Russia was behind in aspects of the new world, and they needed to be self-sufficient, communistically.

Collapse of USSR

1930

The Soviet Union dissolved into fifteen seperate states, and the west celebrated the success of democracy over totalitarianism. The dissolution signaled the end of the Cold War. Basically, tons of nationalism movements protesting the need for independent states. When Ukraine voted full independence, the end of the USSR was upon them.

Hitler Rules in Germany

1933 - 1945

Hitlers entire rule in Germany was based on three things: expansion, extreme fascism, and ethnic cleansing. He was elected chancellor in an attempt to assuage the Nazi party, but he killed his opponents and began a dictatorship, that lasted well into World War II.

Long March by Chinese Communists

1934

During a civil war, Chinese Communists fought fiercely to make their way out of their headquarters that were enclosed by Nationalists. This year long march put Mao Zedong out on top as the ruler of Chinese Communists.

Invasion of China by Japan

1937

The Japanese invaded China under the pretense of imperial expansion thoughts. They committed many atrocities, like the Rape of Nanjing, and perpetrated the use of comfort women. This was based on the idea that Japanese were racially superior to Chinese.

WWII

1939 - 1945

The second World War was a result of lasting tensions form the first one. This war was between the Allies (The United States, Russia, and The United Kingdom) and the Axis (Germany, Japan, and Italy). After 6 years and 1 day, the war ended in an Allies Powers victory.

Est. of United Nations

1945

The United Nations is a reincarnation of the League of Nations, except this time, the United Nations actually had the power to avert crises. The group was formed post WWII, and includes almost every country on the planet.

Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima & Nagasaki

1945

After the threat of the German Nazi's and Hitler had been neutralized, the Japanese were still causing problems in the Pacific. Since we had interests in the Pacific, and we felt the need to retaliate because of Pearl Harbor, we dropped firebombs, with the threat of death if they didn't surrender. Without waiting for a surrender, we dropped two atomic bombs on two cities, wiping out towns, and leveling buildings. There were countless deaths as a result. It has been considered a US war crime.

Est. of NATO

1949

NATO is an organization of capitalist countries that have mutual alliances to protect the capitalist way. In response, the Warsaw Pact is a communist agreement of the same sort: alliances to defend the communist way.

Korean War

1950 - 1953

The Korean war was one of the many Cold War proxy war. After wresting independence from Japan, the Koreans were trying to figure out what to do with their government and economy. While the north of Korea decided on communism, the south side sided with the UN. China began to assist the North in battles, while the UN helped out the south. The war ended in a stalemate, and the judt divided the country along the 38th parallel.

French Defeat at Dien Bien Phu

1954

This defeat was the marker for the end of French colonialism in Vietnam. When the French left, though, Vietnam was not used to autonomy, therefore floundering for a bit of time, before deciding that the best course of action was to become communistic.

Vietnam War

1955 - 1976

Another proxy war of the Cold War, the war involved the want of communism in Vietnam, while the US contained them, instating a government in the south to control the guerillas. After Russia backed the north, and many deaths, the US pulled their influence out of Vietnam and it became communist.

Uprising in Hungary

1956

Hungary was a sattelite state of the dissovling USSR. They rebelled in protest for independence, and they were one of the states that wanted to remove communism, since it wasn't exactly working well for the USSR. The uprisings were generally anti-Stalinist.

Construction of Berlin Wall

1961

At the end of WWII, the Allies divided Germany into sections of occupation. Eventually Germany needed land back, but Russia was quite reluctant to give up their part (East Germany). Travel bans were put in place, then, almost overnight, a wall was constructed that cut off East (now communist, like USSR) from West.

Creation of PLO

1964

PLO was originally a terrorist organization that was created in response to the Israeli vs. Palestinian conflict. It planned to succeed through an armed struggle to liberate Palestine. It was seen as terrorist until the Madrid Conference. where countires sought to resolve the conflict.

6.3 New Conceptualizations of Global Economy, Society, and Culture

Japan Makes 21 Demands of China

1915

Since the Republic of China was extremely weak during this time, Japan saw an opprotunity to expand and grow. They demanded Manchuria, and all of China's economy, amongst other things. They were threatened with war and attack if they did not meet their demands.

Bolshevik Revolution

1917

Also known as the October Revolution, this was a revolution of Leninists, who had changed a bit of the Marxist ideals. They enacted coup and overthrew the monarchy, by killing the Romanov family.

Mussolini Launches Fascist Movement in Italy

1919

Mussolini was a totalitarianist governor of Italy who instated a fascist government in Italy. He preached for a militaristic society. One of his acts was heavily bombing Ethiopia in retaliation for defeat in the Scramble for Africa's rush of colonization. He also instated the Black Shirts, who were bascially Mussolini's secret police.

US Stock Market Crash

1929

After the enormous financial upswing of the Roaring 20's, things were looking good for America. However, dismal predictions of maximum economic output caused terrfied stockholders to sell millions of shares, causing an almost overnight drop, known as Black Thursday, while causing massive unemployment all around the US, the entire world was affected by it, as America was a mjaor economic player in post-WWII economics.

Civil Disobedience Movement in India

1930

The Civil Disobedience Movement of India was headed by Mahatma Gandhi in protest for an independent India. The laws that the British colonists put in place allowed for the unjust exploitation of native Indians. The movement promoted 100% nonviolence, called satyagraha.

Japanese Invasion of Manchuria

1931

Caused by the Mukden Incident, where the Japanese military detonated dynamite on a raliroad, and then blamed it on China, the Japanese invaded and occupied Manchuria, creating a puppet state, known as Manchukuo.

Stalin’s ‘Great Purge’ in USSR

1935 - 1938

Josef Stalin was becoming increasingly paranoid of people opposing his rule, and he ordered the quick "disappearance" of all those who opposed him. Most were either killed, while others were sent to labor camps.

Cardenas Nationalizes Oil Industry in Mexico

1938

Cardenas was the president of Mexico, and in order to increase the economy, he nationalized the oil industry of Mexico. He was a populist leader, and since the entire oil industry was in foreign affairs, he centralized it, and made it so the revenue would end in Mexico.

Partition of India

1947

The partition of India came about as the independence movement of India was becoming huge. The Indian national Congress was in charge, and because of the Hindu majority, the Muslim League formed, as Muslims were worried about the majority. Campaigning for a separation, Pakistan was created as a Muslim state, initiating one of the largest migrations of people, as Muslims moved to Pakistan, and as Hindus moved from Pakistan to India.

Creation of Israel

1948

Israel was made to be a Jewish state, and was recognized by the UN, but the Muslim states surrounding the area refused to accept it. This conflict initiated the Israeli-Palestinian battle, over the area of Israel.

Apartheid in South Africa

1948 - 1989

Apartheid was, in a general definition, the Jim Crow acts of South Africa. It separated many of the things the blacks and whites of South Africa did. The idea was protested fiercely by Nelson Mandela and the ANC. He succeeded in 1989, and the apartheid was lifted

Great Leap Forward in China

1958 - 1961

Introduced by Mao Zedong, the Great Leap Forward was a plan for extremely quick industrialization of China. It was a bit unsuccessful, since he decided that locusts were capitalist. He ordered the death of many sparrows, and insects devastated agricultural fields all around China.

Castro Comes to Power in Cuba

1959

Fidel Castro was a Cuban communist leader. The Cuban Missile crisis was when the Russian's wanted to put nuclear bombs in Cuba, but that was too close to America for comfort. Fidel allowed it, but after a tense series of negotiations, the missiles were removed, and the Cold War did not end up a nuclear one.